Cheruvayal Raman, a renowned conservationist of traditional paddy seeds, passed away at the age of 74 on Wednesday . He was undergoing treatment at Kozhikode Medical College hospital for age-related ailments. A native of Kammana in Edavaka, Wayanad, he was widely known locally as ‘Nellachan’ (father of paddy) for dedicating his life to the preservation of indigenous paddy varieties.
Born in 1952 to Kelappan and Theyi of the Cheruvayal Kurichya ancestral lineage, Raman took over the responsibility of managing his family’s agricultural land, livestock, and traditional seeds at the age of 17 following the death of his uncle. Despite facing obstacles in formal higher education, he gained extensive agricultural knowledge through life experience. Raman preserved numerous traditional rice seeds, including Kunnumkulamban, Peruvaka, Kuthicheera, Kunkumasali,Kunjunni, Onamottam, Onachanna, Vellimuthu, Kanakam, and Chembakam.
He consistently provided paddy seeds to those seeking them without charging any money. Over the course of his lifetime, Raman represented Kerala’s agricultural community on international platforms, including the International Conference on Biodiversity Conservation in Hyderabad in 2011 and a world agricultural seminar in Brazil.
In total, he participated in global conventions across 11 countries. His contributions to agrobiodiversity earned him several accolades, including the Plant Genome Savior Award from the Union Ministry of Agriculture. In 2023, he was conferred the Padma Shri, one of the nation’s highest civilian honors. This guardian of native paddy seeds was also the winner of the State government’s first Oommen Chandy memorial award-2025 for his outstanding contributions to the agriculture sector.
Published – October 14, 2026 05:30 pm IST